Don't shame yourself from wanting to do the work that you love.

–Becca Carnahan

Flexibility and fulfillment? Yes, please — but what does that really mean? I’m really excited to talk with Becca Carnahan, a career coach who specializes in helping moms find fulfilling jobs that they love without giving up the flexibility that they need.

We start with some of the questions that help people define fulfillment for themselves: What skills do you want to use on a regular basis? Who do you want to surround yourself with? What impact do you want to make? What factors play into fulfillment from a job perspective and from a life perspective? We ask questions to define flexibility.

The question of flexibility and fulfillment may come up while you are in a job, but how do you address that when you are re-entering the workforce after time without paying work? We get into 4 steps for approaching the search and finding something that really works for you financially and with fulfillment and flexibility in mind.

We talk about: 

• What it means to job craft and how that can lead to more fulfillment and flexibility
• Results-focused jobs vs. facetime-focused jobs and the effect of company values
• Starting from what you want to do, not what you think you are qualified to do
• Getting clear and comfortable with what you have to offer before you try to sell somebody else on it
• Defining what you want work and parenting and other parts to life to look like
• Anticipating life shifts that will change your wants around work

BIO

Becca Carnahan is a career coach, author, and mom of two. She specializes in helping Millennial and GenX women make big changes and find more joy and fulfillment in their careers. She leads with enthusiasm to make the process fun, brings the expertise gained over a 14 year career in career and professional development at Harvard Business School, and adds empathy so you feel truly seen and heard. Career and life don’t live in separate boxes. Becca gets that and helps clients think about life and career holistically and work with her to find or create your dream job.

LINKS

• https://beccacarnahan.com/

Doable Changes from this episode:

• DEFINE FULFILLMENT. What skills do you want to use on a regular basis? Who do you want to surround yourself with? What impact do you want to make? What factors play into fulfillment from a job perspective and from a life perspective? Try journaling about these questions to get a clearer sense of what fulfillment really looks like to you.
• ASK FOR THE FLEXIBILITY YOU NEED. First define what flexible means. Do you want to get your kid off the bus every day? Do you want Fridays off this summer? Do you want to work from home on certain days? Do you want days with no meetings? Get really clear on what you want. And then ask for it.
• LOOK AHEAD. Becca knew that she wanted something different when her son started kindergarten, and she anticipates other changes as her kids get a little older. What life changes are looming? How might these affect your work? Can you plan for that now? Start by looking 1–5 years ahead. Write down changes you see. Maybe talk to people with kids that age. What will be happening? How do you want things to work? What might flexibility look like in that situation? What steps could you take today to move in that direction?